1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a water-retaining saucer, or tray, for a plant and, more particularly, to such a plant saucer, or tray, having an overflow relief valve.
2. State of the Prior Art
Plant saucers, or trays, are well known in the art and are used, typically for a potted plant, to retain excess water which either overflows from a pot in which the plant is potted or escapes from the pot through a drain hole as is typically provided in the bottom of the pot. A plant saucer thus protects surrounding surfaces from water damage while also serving as a reservoir, the water retained therein being absorbed into the soil within the pot by return flow through the drain hole.
Such saucers are of various different configurations and are made of various different materials, including relatively lightweight molded plastic saucers, earthenware saucers and metallic saucers, for example.
The plastic and metallic type saucers in many respects provide better protection than an earthenware for an underlying surface on which the saucer with the potted plant is placed, due to the impermeability of the plastic or metallic material of which they are formed. On the other hand, plastic saucers typically are very light weight and flexible. As a result, as the height of water approaches the rim of the saucer and an overflow condition, it becomes difficult to take corrective measures, such as moving the saucer to a safe location for discharge of the excess water, etc., since the plastic saucer likely will deform and water spillage then will occur. The resulting potential water damage to the surroundings is a problem which the saucer was intended to avoid at the outset. The earthenware and metallic saucers, on the other hand, are more rigid; nevertheless, even if the potted plant can be removed from the saucer and/or moved with the saucer to a safe location for discharge of the excessive water, before overflow occurs, there remains the problem of spillage occurring in such movement from the overly full saucer, especially due to the large exposed surface area of the water in a typical saucer configuration.
Certain plants, such as orchids, preferably are watered by continuous flushing with a large volume of water, well exceeding the capacity of the pot and any saucer in which it is kept. In such instances, the pots and associated saucers must be removed from their normal surroundings and transported to a remote location for watering and then left to drain, before being returned to their normal surroundings.
Existing plant saucers thus have significant limitations and inadequacies in their use and capabilities, rendering them not only inconvenient in use but also incapable, in many respects, of performing their intended functions.